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Jun. 4, 2026

$4M settlement reached in deadly El Dorado gender reveal fire

The government alleged the defendants were liable because a gender reveal smoke bomb ignited dry vegetation.

An Ohio smoke bomb designer and importer and two other companies will pay over $4 million in costs and damages for the 2020 El Dorado Fire, sparked by a gender reveal photo shoot that burned nearly 23,000 acres and killed a firefighter.

Wholesale Fireworks Corp. of Hubbard, Ohio, and its Hudson, Ohio-based subsidiary, American Fireworks Wholesale LLC, agreed to pay $4 million to settle U.S. Forest Service claims, while Florida-based Pink or Blue Gender Team Inc. agreed to pay $50,...

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